Thoughts on AIME: ‘AI Management Essentials’. 
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Thoughts on AIME: ‘AI Management Essentials’. 

26 Feb Thoughts on AIME: ‘AI Management Essentials’. 

Posted at 13:43h in AI news, AI Theory, Opinions by

Is AI risk aversion and skepticism stifling small business in the UK?

 

And… are initiatives like AIME making leaders even more wary? 

 

A few weeks ago I was invited to provide feedback on government AI guidance for industry ‘AI Management Essentials’ (AIME)’. Whilst writing my feedback I donned my SME / SMB hat (and gloves and scarf – brrr!), advocating for those who are just starting their AI journey. 

To provide some context, the title of the guidance is ‘AI Management Essentials’ (AIME)’. A name that appears to represent a package of information that includes guidance for managers on AI adoption, but in fact is a governance, compliance and risk management check list.

Whilst there is nothing wrong with any of these aspects of management, but I immediately imagined the excited leader of an SMB/SME accessing this thinking:

‘Great! Finally some advice without the hype and BS, that I can trust, telling me what I can do with AI’… 

But then… confronting a list of 10 (often alarming and daunting) questions that indicate what that leader should do before actually using (or deriving any benefit from) AI. 

So what?

For SMBs that often compete through agility and rapid innovation, (misapplied) heavy governance frameworks create multiple barriers and challenges:

  • They slow down the speed-to-market advantage that smaller businesses rely on
  • They consume resources that could be driving innovation
  • They risk pushing SMBs to delay AI adoption while larger competitors with greater capacity forge ahead
  • Any consideration of AI is thrown into the ‘too-hard’ basket by intimidated leaders – to be looked at later when it is too-late

For clarity, I’m not suggesting that AI (or any other significant change or initiative) is risk free, or that there is no place for compliance and governance. Far from it. My view is that AI presents some unique challenges that (in all aspects of life and business) we are yet to properly understand and tackle. 

However, this does not mean that the optimal response is to throw the baby out with the water, or to build barriers to entry so high that busy SMBs give up. Ignoring the inevitable is rarely the optimal answer. 

So, my feedback on the AIME initiative focused on:

  • Keeping governance proportional to business size and target use case
  • Starting small and scaling gradually in line with AI experimentation 
  • Focusing first (or at least equally) on practical value, and building appropriate guardrails

 

IMO, here we see enterprise-level compliance frameworks being pushed onto smaller businesses as a default starting point. This risks deterring SMBs from exploring AI opportunities that could boost their competitiveness. 

Whats an alternative for SMB/SME leaders?

So what kinds of content would I expect to see in an ‘AI Management Essentials’ toolkit? Here is a starter for 10: 

  • Establishing knowledgeable AI Leadership & Informed Strategy
  • Managing AI Software & Systems Development
  • Decision-Making in an AI-Powered World
  • AI Governance, Compliance, and Risk Management
  • AI Talent & Technical Team Management
  • Cloud, Infrastructure, and AI Driven Digital Transformation
  • AI Automation, and Emerging Tools/Technologies
  • Scaling Technology Operations
  • Vendor, Partner, and API Ecosystem Management

 

For those SME/SMBs just starting out on their Ai journey, here are some generic and basic pointers for you: 

  • Start small and scaling gradually – avoid high risk initiatives until you are much more confident and/or others have blazed the trail 
  • Keeping governance proportional to business size and use case (pares with low risk activities) 
  • Focus first on practical value (primarily finding efficiencies), and building appropriate guardrails in tandem 
  • Be reasonably ready to respond when things do not go to plan (nothing is ever perfect) 

 

Here is another way to consider AI adoption, I break down my services into these three areas:

  • Strategy setting – longer term planning 
  • Tools and efficiencies – shorter term benefits 
  • Builds and Projects – solving significant challenges or addressing opportunities 

 

If you would like assistance with any of these (or just want to have a pragmatic and sensible discussion about AI), please do reach out.